What are companies doing with regards to 'Giving Something Back'

Square One's round-the-world fitness challenge proved a brilliant way to improve wellbeing and develop a “we're all in this together” attitude after lockdown began. Staff could run, walk or cycle to contribute their portion of the mileage. A virtual running club and weekly fitness challenges also boosted mind and body.

Square One offers a unique company car scheme; once employees have achieved certain criteria they are entitled to a company car or a cash alternative. At the top end of the scheme, they can drive a car worth up to £35,000.

The new and improved version of the company's 12-month leadership development programme, first launched in 2017, is based on three main targets: more relevant, more flexible, more bite-sized. The lessons will contain skills and concepts immediately applicable to day-to-day work.

Much of the talent in the studio arrives through referrals from existing members of staff, reflecting the belief they have in the company. Referral bonuses are paid, up to £5,000 for the hardest-to-fill roles. Splash Damage's concerted push on diversity and inclusion has improved the variety of applicants.

A positive outcome of the pandemic is that communication within and across the company is better than ever. Good communication was key to maintaining high levels of engagement and CEO Georg Ell led from the front with weekly All Hands meetings that kept everyone informed.

Though this was paused it from April to September 2020, an individual training budget for every employee has since been reinstated. Smoothwall recently recruited a software engineer apprentice who will complete a DevAccelerator upskill programme with Northcoders – a bespoke apprenticeship scheme – for 16 months. The executive team supports managers' with personal coaching.

The senior management team launched their Inclusion Pledge and initiatives including a quarterly inclusion survey. A Leadership Mentoring Scheme has also been introduced. This scheme invites applications from everyone, however, it particularly encourages them from employees from underrepresented groups and those who struggle to be heard or who think differently.

SB&G has created a central budget for peer-to-peer recognition, in the form of “Now That” rewards. Staff can recognise their colleagues in the moment with a personalised “Now That” reward of up to £50 with staff sending e-vouchers and deliveries to their colleagues throughout the pandemic.

During the pandemic, the executive board supported staff working at home by backing three key initiatives: staying informed about the business, keeping in touch with each other and being recognised for personal achievements.

The business created a wellbeing information pack, which contains practical advice to help colleagues manage all aspects of their health. It also gave each colleague £50 to spend on their own or their family's wellbeing and will be introducing a £150 annual wellbeing allowance.

A group was set up for parents during the pandemic so they could share ideas on home-schooling and keeping their youngsters entertained. Letters and sweets were sent to the children, thanking them for supporting their parents while they worked from home.

The mutual's employee rewards include performance-related bonuses and pay rises, extra holiday on birthdays and instant recognition awards. Sometimes staff do something that deserves an immediate response, so managers are able to offer on-the-spot rewards such as chocolates and gift vouchers.

Management performance is assessed on a six-monthly basis. The key performance indicators include: rate of productivity, response rate to feedback, relationships with external interested parties, working environment of the organisation, planning and risk management, and amount of profit.

Every team member was asked to contribute to the weekly Zoom meetings and the company took their comments into account when planning or implementing policies. This helped to ensure wellbeing was monitored so action could be taken if anyone was struggling to cope with work or the challenges of Covid-19.

The senior management team lead by example, by living the organisation's values and principles. They demonstrate this through their behaviour and how they interact with staff. They have a friendly, honest and open approach and staff have regular opportunities to engage with them and ask them questions.

Scarf has introduced a further learning support policy which encourages staff to take courses that lead to a recognised educational or professional qualification. The organisation loans employees up to £1,000 in course fees.

To help staff return to the office, Salix hired parking spaces near its HQ to allow those with a car to drive in. Also it gave staff a £500 bonus to put towards something to help their mental wellbeing, such as yoga classes, while transitioning from working from home.

Salix has an unusually high number of female employees: the chief executive and 60% of the managers throughout the organisation are women. Just over a quarter of staff are from BAME backgrounds, with the workforce including staff from all over the world.

Fortunately, risual did not have to make any Covid-related redundancies, and staff on furlough – whose pay was topped up to 100% – remained actively engaged with the business via team meetings, company update calls and daily catch-ups, along with investment in their personal development. All colleagues took part in virtual social events too, such as quizzes and competitions.

With the 2020 Olympics postponed the virtual risual Olympics was born, formed of cross-divisional teams that sparked communication. The company encouraged all employees to be mentally and physically active during the pandemic, hosting varied activities from running, walking and cycling to reading books, watching films and a guess the baby challenge.